The Prez's Biggest Fan

No cartoon heroes for this little girl – she idolises South Africa’s first citizen

- Robyn Lucas

FOR almost a year the little girl had been dreaming of meeting her hero: President Cyril Ramaphosa. She posted videos on social media and wrote letters with her mom’s help, begging the country’s first citizen for a meet-up.

Mehran Dildar of Isipingo near Durban is such a fan she even had the president’s face on her birthday cake. But the months crept by and still no Ramaphosa – until one day the phone rang.

On the line was someone from the president’s office saying Ramaphosa knew about his No 1 fan. The representative told Mehran’s mom, Fatima Yacoob Dildar, that the president had seen some of her videos, read reports about her and would be honoured to meet her.

“I thought it was a hoax,” Fatima says. “I researched the name and credentials of the caller before I accepted it was legit.”

It was – and on 15 April little Mehran’s wish finally came true. “It was one of the best days of my life and I’ll never forget it,” the four-year-old tells us a day later.

Mehran, who wore her best pink dress, brought along a few goodies for the president in a gold gift bag. “She also took a mug that read, ‘Dear President Cyril Ramaphosa, thank you for making my dream come true. Love, Mehran Dildar’.

“He knelt to her height and read it out loud,” Fatima says. “He expressed his gratitude by saying, ‘Wow, that’s wonderful, thank you so much’.”